Neil Grove and Mike Hayes both started slowly, but only one took the reigns late.

The matchup served as the main event of Bellator 52, which took place Saturday at L’Auberge du Lac Casino Resort in Lake Charles, La. The main card aired live on MTV2 while the preliminary card streamed on Spike.com.

It was a feeling-out process early as both men appeared to be in counter mode throughout the majority of the opening round.

Nevertheless, Grove was able to establish his low kicks and appeared as if he was using them to set up his powerful hands. The kicks, coupled with a stiff jab, allowed him to stay at distance and secure the round.

The second round was very close. Hayes started to work on the body of Grove with his kicks and punches. Grove, on the other hand, remained tentative. He was able to land a jab here and there, but he appeared to drop the round strictly on volume alone.

Grove showed more urgency in the final frame after listening to stern instruction from his cornermen following the second round. He began pressing the action and looking to bully Hayes against the fence and flurry. Grove’s plan of action was stopped once he got off balance following his wild striking. Hayes was able to record a takedown and immediately move into side control.

The Washington native eventually took Grove’s back but was reversed. With roughly one minute left, Grove made a mistake that may have cost him the fight. He attempted a foot lock, missed, and ended up on his back following a scramble.

From there, Hayes was able to land some ground and pound and force Grove to defend a keylock for roughly 30 seconds.

The assist from Grove essentially propelled Hayes to victory.

With the mild upset, Hayes (16-4-1 MMA, 2-1 BFC) moves his winning streak to three while former tournament finalist Grove (11-4-1 MMA, 3-2 BFC) loses for only the second time since February 2009.

Ivanov rolls over Jensen in one-sided mismatch

It was clear from the start there were two different classes of fighters in the cage with Blagoi Ivanov and Zak Jensen.

The 2008 Combat Sambo World Champion Ivanov used superior boxing technique, speed and accuracy to bloody the face of Jensen in round one. Jensen offered little offense, and it bordered on a 10-8 round.

An outside trip takedown from Ivanov started off the second frame, where he immediately began to crank on a keylock attempt. Jensen gave up full mount attempting to defend. Eventually, Jensen was able to scramble out, but as he drove forward attempting to push Ivanov against the fence he left his neck exposed.

Ivanov locked in a tight guillotine choke that left Jensen unconscious and unable to tap.

The impressive performance from Ivanov (5-0 MMA, 2-0 BFC) furthers his career winning streak to five. Conversely, Jensen (10-8 MMA, 0-2 BFC), who took the fight on a day’s notice when Thiago Santos was stuck in Brazil with visa issues, now has lost five of his last six bouts.

Pringle pulls away in third after contentious start

In the battle of heavyweight (Abe Wagner) vs. glorified super heavyweight (Eric Prindle), each man had his moments over the course of 15 minutes.

In the opening frame, an early kick from Prindle was caught, and he ended up his back. This allowed Wagner to quickly move into side control. He stepped over into full mount and scored with ground and pound. Prindle was able to turn his body, and Wagner could not secure back position. Both men stood following a failed armbar attempt from Wagner, where a clean right cross wobbled Prindle late. The round ended with Prindle bleeding heavily from his nose.

Wagner was able to turn the tide in the second as both men began to show signs of fatigue. A thudding left hook from Pringle sent Wagner diving for a leg and put him in trouble. Pringle was able to transition to mount, where he chose to give up position to go for a side choke that was unsuccessful. He then attempted a keylock.

The submission attempts allowed Wagner to fully recover from the damage. The pair traded ankle lock attempts as the round ended.

Pringle controlled Jensen, a cast member on “The Ultimate Fighter 10,” with his top control throughout the majority of the final stanza after a failed Wagner takedown attempt. Prindle was able to use his sprawl to avoid the early takedown and progress from side control to full mount. His powerful ground and pound strikes were the icing on the cake.

With the decision, Prindle (10-5 MMA, 0-1 BFC) remains unblemished in the Bellator promotion. Wagner (10-5 MMA, 0-1 BFC) now has lost two of his three bouts following his knockout win over former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia.

Sparks makes quick work of Holata

Ron Sparks kicked off the broadcast-opening bout with authority.

The 36-year-old needed just 84 seconds to dust off former University of Tulsa football player Mark Holata.

Holata came out early looking to push the pace. Neither man was getting the better of the exchanges. However, once the pair separated after clinching against the fence, the final combination was set in motion.

A left-hook, overhand-right, left-hook combination put Holata flat on his back, where Sparks followed up and finished him off.

“These guys are monsters … but I am the monster,” Sparks said.

In earning his spot in Bellator’s season-five heavyweight tournament semifinals, Sparks (8-0 MMA, 3-0 BFC) has now won eight consecutive fights since turning pro. Holata (11-3 MMA, 1-1 BFC), on the other hand, sees his winning streak halted at eight.

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